The English Team

We met over breakfast to discuss the importance of TVM's only English-language newscast during the election. The staff is down to exactly two people: Afra (left), who anchors most of the broadcasts, and JD (center), a very talented producer. Andrew and Laura will be contributing reports in English while they are here, but we desperately need more bilingual staff on the foreign desk, which is also responsible for translating Reuters international news into Dhivehi.

Afra may not realize it, but when he anchors the 21:00 show, he's probably the most important news source for all of the foreigners here to monitor the election. It's crucial that the program include all of the day's top developments. Yet, the English news is always put off until the last minute because the Dhivehi scripts for the 20:00 prime news come in so late. We need to manage the workflow better and try to overcome the cultural tendency to leave everything until the last minute. Dhivehi reporters all speak some English: the entire country studies English in school beginning at age 4. We need everyone to try and get soundbites in both languages, especially on stories of interest to the international community. Those monitoring the election in English should also be able to see that the coverage is free and fair.